Assistant Curator at Bates College Art Museum

Job Title: Assistant Curator

Job Status: Full-time

Location: Lewiston, ME

About the Bates College Museum of Art
The Bates Museum of Museum of Art is a preeminent cultural center on campus, supporting the mission, values, and aspirations of the college. Using exhibitions, collections, educational programs, and staff, the Museum leads and collaborates in interdisciplinary teaching and learning at Bates. We make the most of our intimate size and academic environment to create hands-on learning experiences,
interactions with artists and scholars, and direct engagement with works of art. We take creative approaches to integrate art into college and area school curriculum. The museum brings a world of ideas to campus that enhance the vitality of the intellectual and cultural life of Bates, the surrounding communities, and beyond.

The museum organizes 6-8 exhibitions annually, and provides stewardship to and researches an 8,000+ object collection. Collection strengths include the world renown Marsden Hartley Memorial Collection, modern and contemporary works on paper, select holdings of pre-modern prints, contemporary Chinese art (particularly photographs), Pre-Columbian art, African art, and works by Maine artists and artists of national and international significance working in Maine.

Position Purpose:

The Assistant Curator supports and assists the Director in fulfilling the mission of the Museum of Art and Bates College through short and long-term planning. Responsibilities include managing the planning, preparation, implementation, installation and promotion of temporary and permanent collection exhibitions. Serves as the liaison between Facilities Services staff, external trades, and freelance museum technicians, installers, and preparators. Partners with Art & Visual Culture (AVC) faculty on planning the annual Senior Thesis Exhibition and functions as lead museum staff on all aspects of its implementation.

The Assistant Curator also assists with, develops, oversees, or contributes to exhibition publications, including working with education staff, artists, writers, designers, and printers. Supports the museum internship program, mentoring and training curatorial museum interns. Contributes to interpretive materials and programming. This position assists with collections development, as well as the cultivation of art patrons, donors, and external agencies. In collaboration with the Collections Manager/Registrar (CMR), manages and supports physical operations and capital projects.
Job Duties:

Curatorial

  • Assists Director with developing and implementing exhibitions schedule.
  • Assists with and plans and develops permanent collection exhibitions and related scholarship, publications, and interpretive materials.
  • Assists with and plans and develops temporary exhibitions and related scholarship and publications.
  • Works closely with Art & Visual Culture faculty on planning and leads all aspects of implementation of the annual Senior Thesis Exhibition.
  • Assists Director with collection development including acquisitions and deaccessions.
  • Works closely with Education staff on development of interpretive materials and programming.
  • Schedules and oversees exhibition installations, including gallery construction, exhibition furniture and mount making, matting, framing, preparatory work, lighting, signage and labels.
  • Assists Director or visiting curators with implementation of curatorial projects and initiatives.
  • Assists and develops curatorial projects and initiatives in consultation with Director.
  • Works closely with CMR on coordination of shipping, crating, incoming and outgoing loans. 

Exhibitions/Preparation and Installations

  • Leads, coordinates, and manages and a team including Facilities Services staff, external trades, and freelance museum technicians, installers, and preparators.

Collections

  • Conducts research on collections, assists others with collections research, from external scholars to interns.
  • Participates in curatorial side of collections stewardship; works closely with and supports Collections Manager/Registrar on collections care and management, including registration, database management, coordination of incoming and outgoing loans, care and handling of works of art, off-site storage and the transfer of work to/from there, packing and crating, shipping.

Administrative/Other

  • Manages some curatorial and collection projects including grants, budgets, and project teams; participates in and provides assistance on others.
  • Assists director with museum strategic and long-range planning, including exhibitions, acquisitions, collections management.
  • Facilities management: coordinates/co-coordinates with CMR on managing HVAC, facilities maintenance, lighting, fire safety, and custodial, with Facilities Services, Security and Campus Safety, among others.
  • Works with Director, Collections Manager/Registrar, Education Curator, Assistant Education Curator, Academic Administrative Assistant, as needed on the work of the museum.
  • Assists Director with museum advancement initiatives and donor relations.

 

Requirements

Education

  • M.A. in art history, museum studies, or other relevant degree

Experience

  • Minimum of two years of experience working in art museums and/or art galleries is required

Skills and Knowledge

  • The position requires a professional with knowledge of art, particularly contemporary art, and broad interests in art across disciplines, media, periods, cultures and ethnicities.
  • Ability to work collaboratively as part of a small professional team who staff a dynamic and distinguished academic museum with a significant cultural presence on campus, in the community, and in the academic museum field
  • Work with a diverse group of faculty, staff, students and museum visitors on a daily basis
  • Be self-motivated and able to manage multiple projects simultaneously, manage subcontractors, work collaboratively and diplomatically, and be accountable for the success of their areas of responsibilities.
  • Commitment to equity and inclusion, and serving the needs of a culturally and educationally diverse community.

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